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Help honor Hawai‘i CC alumni who have contributed to Kīlauea eruption recovery

Nov

08

2018

By tmoats

Hawai'i Community College Carpentry students work on the Model Home Project, a real-world application of their skills that helps prepare them for the workforce. Carpentry alumni were among those who responded to help the community during the recent Kilauea eruption.

UPDATED: Nominations Due December 31.

Hawai‘i Community College Alumni & ‘Ohana is pleased to announce that nominations for the Alumni of the Year Award are now open. The award, established in 2017, recognizes Hawai‘i CC alumni and former students who have made major contributions to their professions, vocations, and/or communities.

ANNUAL THEME

The theme for the 2018-19 Alumni of the Year award is “Kupukupu: Building a Resilient Community.” People are encouraged to nominate alumni who helped respond to the effects of the Kīlauea eruption in Puna.

“The Kīlauea eruption of 2018 brought hardship to many Hawai‘i Island residents,” said Hawai‘i CC Chancellor Rachel Solemsaas. “But it also brought out the best in our community and showed why this island is such a special place. Many volunteers and workers who helped residents navigate this difficult time are Hawai‘i Community College alumni. In some cases, they were using skills and knowledge learned at Hawai‘i CC to help their neighbors. Please help us honor them by nominating them for the Alumni of the Year Award.”

Hawai‘i CC chose kupukupu, an indigenous type of sword fern, to represent the theme because the fern is often used to symbolize a place of learning; kupu means to sprout. In addition, the ferns are often the first plants to grow on fresh lava flows, representing new growth and resilience.

HOW TO NOMINATE

To learn more and complete the nomination below please see the forms below.

Happy holidays to all! This is a time of year for reflecting on the many things in life there are to be grateful for, and one of those is the amazing community support Hawai‘i Community College receives from Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Hawaii (JCCIH).

Kick off the holiday season and celebrate the 30th year of the festive Christmas with the Chefs, Saturday, Dec.1. The annual gala is on the seaside grounds of Courtyard King Kamehameha’s Kona Beach Hotel from 5:30-8 p.m.

After graduating from high school on O’ahu in 2010, Noah Patterson Hanohano Dolim needed direction. He was an underachieving student in high school, Dolim says, and he didn’t know what to do next. That’s when he decided to move to Hilo and enroll at Hawai‘i Community College. With family on Hawai‘i Island, it seemed like a smart move, and it turns out he was right.

Poets Christy Passion, Ann Inoshita, Juliet Kono and Jean Yamasaki Toyama will read from their work that revisits the 1932 kidnapping and murder of Native Hawaiian prize fighter Joseph Kahahawai and the events surrounding it, commonly known as “The Massie Case.” The poetry reading will be followed by a Q&A.

This event is free and open to the public. All are welcome to attend. Light refreshments will be served.

“Coming to Hawai’i Community College was my rebirth, my reinvention of myself. Since then I’ve been on the path of school, and I haven’t stopped yet. I think if I’d gone straight to a four-year university, I don’t think I would have made it. The transition would have been too hard. I really needed the smaller school.”